BABSEACLE’s Clinical Legal Education Initiative: From Cambodia to a Regional and Global Movement

1. 2003

   The Beginning in Cambodia

   BABSEACLE’s CLE journey began in Cambodia in 2003 through work with Paññāsāstra University of Cambodia. This early partnership connected interactive legal education with community teaching, enabling law students to apply their learning while helping communities understand the law.

   • CountryCambodia
   • Documented university reach1 university
2. Nov 2005

   The First Southeast Asia CLE Conference

   The first Southeast Asia Clinical Legal Education Conference was held in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, from 26–30 November 2005. It brought together approximately 85 participants from universities and civil society organisations, representing more than 16 countries.

   Participants were introduced to different CLE experiences and approaches from countries including Mongolia, China, South Africa, Bangladesh, the Philippines and Cambodia. They explored university clinic models, interactive teaching, community legal education, access to justice and the role of law students in supporting communities.

   The conference helped participants build regional relationships, compare different approaches and identify opportunities for university clinic development, teacher training and continued cooperation. These connections contributed to the regional learning and university partnerships that expanded during the following years.

   • Host countryCambodia
   • Regional participationMore than 16 countries
   • ParticipantsApproximately 85
   • SignificanceEarly regional exchange, university networking and shared learning about different CLE models
3. 2006–2008

   CLE Partnerships Expand Across Southeast Asia

   Between 2006 and 2008, BABSEACLE’s work expanded from Cambodia to Malaysia, Thailand, Lao PDR, Vietnam and the Philippines. Early partnerships included universities in Malaysia and Thailand, while new relationships were developed with universities in Lao PDR, Vietnam and the Philippines.

   In 2007, BABSEACLE reported delivering CLE training across six countries. The launch of a CLE programme at the National University of Laos and the development of Malaysia’s first accredited university-based CLE course in 2008 demonstrated that CLE was beginning to move from introductory activities into formal university programmes.

   • CountriesCambodia, Malaysia, Thailand, Lao PDR, Vietnam and the Philippines
   • Documented university developmentAt least 6 specifically identified university partners, with wider university participation through regional training
4. 2009–2012

   National University Networks Begin to Form

   From 2009, the work increasingly focused on building national CLE networks rather than supporting isolated university programs.

   In Vietnam, BABSEACLE worked with more than seven universities in 2009. By 2010, the network included 10 CLE partners, and the 2010–2011 national research involved 8 core university partners and 7 additional partners.

   In Thailand, CLE programs and accredited courses expanded through a growing national university network. A 2011 workshop involved representatives from 7 universities, while a 2012 national workshop brought together representatives from more than 20 Thai law faculties.

   During the same period, university partnerships and peer exchanges connected programs in Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

   • CountriesCambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam
   • Documented university reachMore than 7 universities in Vietnam in 2009; 15 core and additional Vietnamese partners in 2010–2011; more than 20 Thai law faculties represented in 2012
5. 2013–2016

   Nationwide CLE Development in Myanmar

   BABSEACLE began supporting CLE development in Myanmar in 2013. Initial engagement at Yangon University grew into a coordinated national initiative involving all 18 university law departments.

   By April 2014, all 18 departments had agreed to use interactive CLE methods within legal education. During 2014, universities formalized their participation and strengthened teacher development, curriculum integration and different CLE programme models.

   By 2015, all 18 university law faculties were participating in national activities and developing their own CLE programmes. Universities implemented community teaching, in-house consultation clinics, externships and mock trials according to their local capacity and context.

   • CountryMyanmar
   • Documented university reachAll 18 university law departments
6. 2013–2015

   University Networks Deepen in Vietnam, Thailand and Lao PDR

   Alongside the expansion in Myanmar, established CLE networks continued to develop elsewhere.

   In Vietnam, a nine-member university CLE network reviewed five years of development in 2014. Five university CLE programmes subsequently delivered and assessed community legal education activities across five provinces.

   In Lao PDR, BABSEACLE’s work expanded beyond the Faculty of Law & Political Science at the National University of Laos to include the Faculty of Law & Administration at Champasak University, creating a documented network of two higher-education institutions by 2014.

   In Thailand, universities continued to develop CLE courses, clinics, community teaching programmes and national opportunities for lecturers and students to share their experience.

   • CountriesLao PDR, Thailand and Vietnam
   • Documented university reach9 network members in Vietnam; 2 higher-education institutions in Lao PDR; continuing participation across the Thai university network
7. 2015–2016

   Regional CLE Learning Becomes More Structured

   Regional CLE summer schools, conferences, workshops and university exchanges increasingly connected national CLE movements. Participants from Australia, Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand, USA, and Vietnam, together with partners from outside the region, shared CLE models and teaching methods.

   These exchanges enabled experienced universities and teachers to support newer programmes. Regional learning therefore became an important part of developing local leadership and reducing dependence on external trainers.

   • CountriesMultiple countries across Asia
   • Documented university reachNational networks and university representatives from at least 10 Asian countries
8. 2016–2018

   CLE Development Begins in the Maldives

   In 2016, BABSEACLE assessed the potential for CLE development in the Maldives. The assessment examined three higher-education institutions—Maldives National University, Villa College and the Islamic University of Maldives—as well as one Maldives National University regional campus.

   By 2017, Maldives National University had begun putting CLE into practice through a mandatory student externship, mock trials, moot courts, legislative drafting and accredited experiential learning.

   • CountryMaldives
   • Documented institutional reach3 higher-education institutions and 1 regional university campus
9. 2017–2019

   CLE Becomes More Closely Connected to Communities

   In Lao PDR, university CLE programmes at the National University of Laos and Champasak University connected student learning with community teaching, legal consultation and locally relevant curriculum development. Students and teachers delivered supervised legal education in communities while strengthening links with legal professionals and justice institutions.

   This period demonstrated how CLE could simultaneously support student learning, university-community partnerships and greater access to understandable legal information.

   • CountryLao PDR
   • Documented university reach2 principal university programmes involved in the reported activities
10. 2019–2026

    CLE Connects Universities and Justice Institutions

    From 2019 onward, BABSEACLE’s work in Lao PDR increasingly connected CLE with the National Institute of Justice campus network and provincial and district justice institutions.

    CLE developed through a repeated cycle of preparation, interactive learning, community teaching, supervised externships, reflection and program improvement. By 2025–2026, this approach linked CLE centres and justice-sector placements in Vientiane, Luang Prabang, Savannakhet and Champasak, with additional community and legal-aid activities in Khammouane.

    This represented an important stage in the normalization and institutionalization of CLE: local teachers, supervisors and justice personnel increasingly led the programs, while students gained structured opportunities to learn through practice.

    • CountryLao PDR
    • Documented institutional reachA national CLE and justice-education network operating through 4 principal NIJ locations